In what way? Mickelson, Furyk, Watson, D. Johnson and Woods all have losing records. Mickelson (Played 34, won 11 halved 6) the worst Ryder Cup record in history to date. Furyk not far behind (played 27, won 8, halved 4). There are 4 rookies on the US team and the rest have limited exposure.

In what way? Mickelson, Furyk, Watson, D. Johnson and Woods all have losing records. Mickelson (Played 34, won 11 halved 6) the worst Ryder Cup record in history to date. Furyk not far behind (played 27, won 8, halved 4). There are 4 rookies on the US team and the rest have limited exposure.

No I didn't mis-read your post, the bit about getting excuses in early set the ball rolling.

Only one looking pretty stupid is your good self i'm afraid.

You think throwing in a copy n paste from Wikipedia somewhat shows your 'knowledge' on the Ryder Cup and back it up with the ludicrous assertion....."The US team won't even come close to those Ryder Cup records". I realise throwing in stats from ESPN scrum etc is de rigeur on here but in doing so here it highlights your limited knowledge on the Ryder Cup.

It may have escaped you but the Europeans will be playing catch up on Cups won for a hell of a long time to come. The Yanks have dominated this event since its inception so there are no records in the tournament that they would have any reason to be in awe of.

The greatest golfer of all time has an incredibly poor record in the cup, thats none other than Jack Nicklaus. Yet he's been on the winning team more often than not. My point is it's all about the team and it's relative strenght from 1 to 10. 11 and 12 you hope for the best, that you may find a partner who clicks and kicks on to win a couple of points.

The problem with Europe(and if you followed golf you would know this) is its relative inexperience in the side this time round and its middle order players being quite average.

It is this simple fact that I believe will be the undoing of us. Thats not an excuse.

I stand over my original assertion that the Yanks will win handy. Hope i'm wrong but senor Ollie will flounder at this one.

5-3 is a significant enough lead at this stage, but it could have been a hell of a lot worse for Europe, only for Colsaerts. Still hanging in there but the morning foursomes are vital - obvious statement of the day!

Now that it cant be seen as bad sportsmanship, I hope to christ we never see such a tame setup for a golf course again.

There should be an incentive for hitting the fairways, and a penalty for missing it. As it was in Medinah, both European and US players were sending it 40 yards into the trees, ending up with a perfect lie and a clear shot of the green. I know it was intentionally set up that way, and why, but it was very frustrating, especially during the foursomes.

Poulter for me was astonishing and without a doubt the man of the match, being English his brand of humour can get up peoples noses but he backed it up with sensational golf and literally dragged Europe back into the competition on Saturday afternoon with the Four-Ball win. Rory only scored on four of eighteen holes and the run in by Poulter was simply exceptional golf, five birdies on the last five holes...

Delighted for Jose-Maria, the weight of his great friend Seve's memory put a pressure like no other on this Ryder Cup captain. Brave picks on the final day, and his boys rallied round him..!

Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even.Muhammad Ali

Golf: Paul McGinley is the first ever Irish captain of a Ryder Cup team after the European Tournament Committee chose the Dubliner ahead of Colin Montgomerie this evening. A lengthy meeting in Abu Dhabi concluded with the news many expected, and others then feared we might not get, after Montgomerie’s late entrance to the race.

For months it had appeared a straight choice between McGinley and fellow Irishman Darren Clarke, but the Ulsterman muddied the waters when he decided to step aside and leave former skipper Montgomerie as the Dubliner's main rival to lead Europe at Glenaeagles, after his success of 2010 at Celtic Manor. Two other Scots - Sandy Lyle and Paul Lawrie - were also considered for the role, as was Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez.

Reports over the weekend suggested the wind might have been blowing in Monty's favour, with ’sources’ close to the 49-year-old expressing confidence he would be selected. But McGinley, who has maintained a dignified silence throughout the process, enjoyed the support of the players likely to be playing next year, with Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald and Ian Poulter all rowing in behind his candidacy.

Just nine members of the 15-strong selection committee were actually involved in the vote and after nearly three hours word filtered through that McGinley was their man.

“Obviously, I’m delighted to have this honour to lead the European team,” said McGinley on being introduced by Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn. “It's a very humbling experience to be sitting in this seat and it's a week that I'm really looking forward to.”

American team captain Tom Watson, who McGinley described as one of his "great heroes", welcomed the Irishman's appointment almost immediately.

"Congrats to Paul McGinley on your R/C Captaincy," he said on Twitter. "Looking forward to our future competition. You're a class act."

jezzer wrote:Will he be good, I wonder? I'd rate the answer to that at 50:50 right now. Jimenez would have been an intriguing selection - hope he gets a crack at it some day.

At least he has some captaincy experience with his involvement in the Seve Trophy. And he has seen the Ryder Cup both as a player and from the Captain's perspective having been a player three times and vice-captain twice.

I thinks his credentials as captain are as good as any previous nominee (aside from Jacklin and Gallacher who did the job multiple times).